Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny The Movie (lost production material of cancelled anime film; 2006-2007)
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny The Movie, now called Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom, is an upcoming theatrical film which will serve as a continuation of the Mobile Suit Gundam SEED series, which ran from 2004-2005.
Background
In 2002, the anime Mobile Suit Gundam SEED debuted in Japan. It's about a civilian Coordinator, named Kira Yamato, who is caught in the crossfire of a war between the Earth Federation and Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty. Mobile Suit Gundam SEED did very well in both ratings and merchandise sales and ended its run in 2003. In July of 2004, it was announced that follow-up series, called Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny, entered production. Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny debuted in October of 2004 and ended in October of 2005. A sequel series, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny, would tell the story of ZAFT pilot Shinn Asuka, and how the events of the Gundam SEED affected him and his family.
Film
Although the Gundam franchise was very popular, a theatrical film had not been released since 1998, when Gundam Wing's Endless Waltz was rereleased in theaters for the series' 20th anniversary. Sunrise, wanting to cash in on the success of SEED Destiny, planned a sequel film that would tell the stories of the characters after the events in the series.
On May 6, 2006, Sunrise announced that a film for Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny was in the works, under the title of Movie version Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny, and was going to be directed by Fukuda Kimitsu, with Chiaki Morosawa as the screenwriter, both people who had previously worked on both SEED series.
By this time, the next Mobile Suit Gundam series, Mobile Suit Gundam 00, was in production and set for a 2007 release date, taking away much needed staff from the SEED Destiny movie project.
The final blow to the project came in 2008 in an interview with Animage magazine, where the series screenwriter, Chiaki Morosawa revealed she had brain cancer and that the project would be shelved. She did ask fans to wait, hinting at a possible 2009 release date. Sadly, Chiaki Morosawa passed away in February of 2016.
On May 28, 2021, the film re-entered production, as part of the Mobile Suit Gundam SEED PROJECT ignited, a multi-media project celebrating the 20th anniversary of the original SEED series. On July 2, 2023, the movie's title, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom, was revealed, along with a release date of January 26, 2024.
See Also
- Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz (lost YTV promo for anime film; 2000)
- Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ (partially found English dub of anime series; 2005)
External Links
- An announcement for the movie (website is in Japanese). Retrieved 18 Dec '17
- My anime list page for the canceled Gundam SEED Destiny movie. Retrieved 18 Dec '17
- interview with Chiaki Morosawa (in Japanese). Retrieved 18 Dec '17
- a 2019 article confirming that it's in development
- [https://en.gundam.info/news/video-music/01_4527.html article reconfirming the film as part of PROJECT Ignited]